Ensure availability of doctors at hospitals

While the claims of the government to ensure better health care in Jammu and Kashmir are being made with each passing day, some of the incidents are putting a question mark over these statements. In one such instance, a video has gone viral on social media platforms where a man at Sub District Hospital (SDH) Banihal was seen performing CPR to his elderly father in absence of the doctors at the hospice. One cannot imagine better health care without the presence of the medicos round-the-clock. The augmentation of infrastructure in the hospitals can help improve health care, but it needs to be understood that the presence of doctors is more pivotal than anything. The machines and other equipment are pivotal for improving health care, but there is a need to make sure that the doctors remain available during night as well as in the morning and evening hours at the hospital so that the patients will not be pushed to the wall and the emergency cases are treated well on time. The concerned Chief Medical Officers (CMOs) should take note of the incident and ensure that a roster is issued and followed by the doctors in letter and spirit so that the patients in need will not be forced to die without the necessary treatment. The department concerned should also intervene in the matter and ensure there is no laxity in ensuring round-the-clock availability of the doctors at the hospitals across Jammu and Kashmir.